Beccari's "Grande Nouveauté": the discovery, taxonomic history and typification of Pelagodoxa henryana

Abstract

Pelagodoxa henryana, one of the palm family's most distinctive and highly threatened species, was first collected from the Marquesas in 1916 by Charles Henry. The following year, Odoardo Beccari established the genus and named the type species after the collector. The relationship of Pelagodoxa to other palms has puzzled botanists, but by applying advanced research techniques along with precise morphological examination, a clearer understanding of its position within the family has been made possible. A search of relevant herbaria indicated that the materials on which P. henryana was described were not extant, and therefore P. henryana is lectotypified here with illustrations that accompanied the protologue.